Yelena was previously owned by a Russian mining company that used Tokotas for haulage much like pit ponies, but this came to an abrupt end when she was caught in an explosion. Though her wounds finally healed after months of care, she had become mortally afraid of being underground - and in any case the thick scarring on her throat, neck and chest made it impossible for her to wear a harness. She was sold and passed from hand to hand for a while before being turned loose in Siberia and making her way east - where Sosin Tribe eventually took her in. (In canon, she had a natural mane but her mane and coat never recovered from the burns and being shaved for treatment; however in terms of the tokotas group she has always been a half mane and this has not been altered.)